WHAT: Jazz Residency at a famed small rock club by emerging composer/musician, Ryan Meagher and his group Atroefy.
WHERE: Kenny's Castaways on Bleecker St and Thompson St in the West Village.
WHEN: Every Tuesday Night from 11 pm to 2:30 am or later
TICKETS: free
Ryan Meagher's Atroefy, a New York City based ensemble, features the unique compositions of an emerging young musician who fuses “indie rock" sounds with the freedom of avant-garde jazz and the lush arrangements and improvisations of modern jazz. Usually a place with such a storied history as Kenny's Castaways reserves such residencies for up-and-coming rock bands that have their stuff together. For Kenny's Castaways, bringing in a band that is so closely related to jazz was easy because of the unmistakable relationship Ryan's music has to rock and roll.
A truly unique group comprised of some of New York's most talented modern jazz artists, Atroefy raises questions for listeners such as, “What makes genre so important?" One moment one will be listening to a thumping eighth-note guitar riff thoughtfully composed by the bandleader, Ryan Meagher (pronounced Marr). Next will enter the driving force of the band's engine, drummer Vinnie Sperrazza, and one's ears may be awaiting a dark, gloomy voice whispering lyrics of some impending doom. But one's ears are surprised when enters a woody tone from a clarinet or any of the other reed instruments that Mike McGinnis and Loren Stillman play. Anytime the notable reedmen are not playing masterful improvisations, they are playing a composed melody that is half Death Cab for Cutie and half Ornette Coleman that has touches of complex modern harmony in the arrangement of the horns. All of these important ingredients are held together by the rock-solid bass playing of Geoff Kraly, whose creative playing reminds one of both John Entwistle (of The Who) and Charlie Haden.
What makes this gig an important one for the New York jazz scene is that it is a gig that is going to nurture development the way development should be nurtured for musical groups. In a scene where listeners watch clubs go down one after another, and bands fall apart from lack of any apparent style, it is refreshing to see a club that will give a band a chance to grow organically. Atroefy has the freedom to do whatever it wants in its time slot. They are being given the freedom to find their own “thing" week after week, and it is beginning to pay off. In the two short months that the group has been playing these Tuesday night gigs, a lot of the catalog that Atroefy draws from is really starting to take flight. One can only hope that Kenny's Castaways will continue to support such a forward-thinking group so that people can enjoy a well-cultivated, individual sound that came from the most organic of circumstances.
WHERE: Kenny's Castaways on Bleecker St and Thompson St in the West Village.
WHEN: Every Tuesday Night from 11 pm to 2:30 am or later
TICKETS: free
Ryan Meagher's Atroefy, a New York City based ensemble, features the unique compositions of an emerging young musician who fuses “indie rock" sounds with the freedom of avant-garde jazz and the lush arrangements and improvisations of modern jazz. Usually a place with such a storied history as Kenny's Castaways reserves such residencies for up-and-coming rock bands that have their stuff together. For Kenny's Castaways, bringing in a band that is so closely related to jazz was easy because of the unmistakable relationship Ryan's music has to rock and roll.
A truly unique group comprised of some of New York's most talented modern jazz artists, Atroefy raises questions for listeners such as, “What makes genre so important?" One moment one will be listening to a thumping eighth-note guitar riff thoughtfully composed by the bandleader, Ryan Meagher (pronounced Marr). Next will enter the driving force of the band's engine, drummer Vinnie Sperrazza, and one's ears may be awaiting a dark, gloomy voice whispering lyrics of some impending doom. But one's ears are surprised when enters a woody tone from a clarinet or any of the other reed instruments that Mike McGinnis and Loren Stillman play. Anytime the notable reedmen are not playing masterful improvisations, they are playing a composed melody that is half Death Cab for Cutie and half Ornette Coleman that has touches of complex modern harmony in the arrangement of the horns. All of these important ingredients are held together by the rock-solid bass playing of Geoff Kraly, whose creative playing reminds one of both John Entwistle (of The Who) and Charlie Haden.
What makes this gig an important one for the New York jazz scene is that it is a gig that is going to nurture development the way development should be nurtured for musical groups. In a scene where listeners watch clubs go down one after another, and bands fall apart from lack of any apparent style, it is refreshing to see a club that will give a band a chance to grow organically. Atroefy has the freedom to do whatever it wants in its time slot. They are being given the freedom to find their own “thing" week after week, and it is beginning to pay off. In the two short months that the group has been playing these Tuesday night gigs, a lot of the catalog that Atroefy draws from is really starting to take flight. One can only hope that Kenny's Castaways will continue to support such a forward-thinking group so that people can enjoy a well-cultivated, individual sound that came from the most organic of circumstances.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
